During an episode of Thawra (“Revolution”) broadcast on Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation International (LBCI) on November 14, 2019, Beirut Mayor Engineer Jamal Itani made a number of inaccurate statements regarding the unconditional donation offered by MP Fouad Makhzoumi to help address the flooding disaster in the Ramlet al-Baida area.
In response to Mr. Itani’s remarks, the media office of the President of the National Dialogue Party, MP Fouad Makhzoumi, wishes to clarify the following:
1. MP Makhzoumi did not object to the appointment of a specialized consultant by the municipal council. On the contrary, initial coordination between the consultant and the technical team from Al-Mustaqbal Pipe Manufacturing Company began on December 14, 2018, and the parties unanimously agreed on the technical solution at that time.
The objection concerns the specifications document, which included the addition of polyethylene pipes as an alternative to the fiberglass pipes donated by MP Makhzoumi in accordance with a letter issued on November 23, 2018.
It is worth noting that MP Makhzoumi and his specialized team had met with the President of the Council for Development and Reconstruction and his advisers, during which the technical solution was presented and approved. The Council for Development and Reconstruction had previously used fiberglass pipes with the same specifications and intended application.
2. The municipality proceeded to change the pipe diameters that had been agreed upon in the design by Al-Mustaqbal Pipe Manufacturing Company and the consultant appointed by the municipal council, without referring back to the donor or obtaining his approval.
3. At the latest meeting between Al-Mustaqbal Pipe Manufacturing Company and the mayor, held on October 8, 2019, the company’s representatives requested that the specifications document be corrected and the alternative pipes removed. The mayor did not approve this change.
Subsequently, an addendum was issued on November 6, 2019, stipulating the use of fiberglass pipes and excluding any alternative to the type specified in the donation. This followed the intervention of Beirut Governor Judge Ziad Chebib. All of this took place after the municipal council had already launched the tender.
It should be noted that MP Makhzoumi’s donation was unconditional. However, it is clear that the municipality does not implement projects offered to it free of charge and instead seeks projects that require substantial expenditure at costs beyond the required specifications, even when this creates opportunities for waste and extravagance.